[6.1 Local Elections] Key Points in Seoul District Mayor Elections?...High-Profile Candidates Enter, Return Matches Draw Attention

Seoul's 25 District Mayor Candidates Confirmed, Registration Completed on 12-13th... First Local Election After People Power Party's Presidential Victory and Focus on Results in 14 of 25 Districts in 6.1 Local Elections

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] As the candidates for Seoul district mayors have been finalized, candidate registration was completed on the 12th and 13th.

Thus, the official election campaign will begin on the 19th, but preparations such as promoting candidates and securing supporters started from the 14th.

The parties that have nominated candidates for the Seoul mayor and 25 district mayor positions in the June 1 local elections, including the Democratic Party and the People Power Party, have mostly held their candidate campaign office opening ceremonies by the 13th.

Now, only the countdown to the main election remains.

In particular, this election has attracted attention as not only former high-ranking Seoul city officials but also four former members of the National Assembly are running, and a rematch from four years ago is taking place.

◆ Seoul District Mayor Candidates Take Shape... Four Former National Assembly Members from People Power Party Challenge Seoul District Mayor Positions

The Democratic Party currently holds 23 out of 25 district mayor positions, effectively making it the ruling power. Accordingly, the Democratic Party early on nominated incumbent district mayors as single candidates. The candidates include Seo Yang-ho (Jung-gu), Jeong Won-oh (Seongdong), Ryu Kyung-gi (Jungnang), Oh Seung-rok (Nowon), Kim Mi-kyung (Eunpyeong), Kim Soo-young (Yangcheon), Chae Hyun-il (Yeongdeungpo), Park Jun-ui (Gwanak), Jeong Soon-gyun (Gangnam), and Park Sung-soo (Songpa).

Additionally, candidates Kim Seon-gap (Gwangjin), Lee Seung-ro (Seongbuk), Yoo Dong-gyun (Mapo), and Yoo Sung-hoon (Geumcheon) were confirmed after fierce primary battles due to failure to reach consensus among local committee heads, ultimately securing candidacy based on their incumbent recognition.

On the other hand, the People Power Party has found it difficult to select candidates as they have lost Seoul district mayor positions for the past 12 years.

Therefore, they have been actively recruiting external figures suitable for the election, including high-ranking Seoul city officials and former National Assembly members. Confirmed candidates include Jeong Moon-heon (Jongno, former two-term National Assembly member), Kang Maeng-hoon (Seongdong, former Seoul City Urban Regeneration Office Director, Grade 1), Kim Kyung-ho (Gwangjin, former Seoul City Council Secretariat Director, Grade 1), Na Jin-gu (Jungnang, former Seoul Deputy Mayor), Jeong Tae-geun (Seongbuk, former first-term National Assembly member), Lee Seong-heon (Seodaemun, former two-term National Assembly member), Choi Ho-kwon (Yeongdeungpo, former Blue House administrator and Consul General in India), Jeon Sung-soo (Seocho, former Incheon Deputy Mayor), and Seo Kang-seok (Songpa, former Seoul City Finance Director).

Moreover, the People Power Party experienced some turmoil with last-minute candidate replacements in Eunpyeong (Nam Ki-jung), Mapo (Park Kang-soo), and Gangnam (Jo Seong-myeong).

◆ Rematches in Jungnang (Ryu Kyung-gi vs. Na Jin-gu), Nowon (Oh Seung-rok vs. Im Jae-hyeok), Mapo (Yoo Dong-gyun vs. Park Kang-soo), Gwanak (Park Jun-hee vs. Lee Haeng-ja), and Attention on Geumcheon (Yoo Sung-hoon vs. Oh Bong-soo) Duel

Among the Seoul district mayor elections, the Jungnang district mayor race is particularly noteworthy.

Four years ago, Ryu Kyung-gi, the Democratic Party candidate, challenged then-incumbent Na Jin-gu and won. These two candidates are senior and junior colleagues who both served as Seoul City Administrative Deputy Mayors.

This time, former district mayor Na Jin-gu is challenging incumbent Ryu Kyung-gi, reversing the roles of spear and shield.

The Nowon district mayor election is also a rematch after four years, with incumbent Oh Seung-rok facing People Power Party candidate Im Jae-hyeok again.

In Mapo, the election will be a rematch between incumbent Yoo Dong-gyun and People Power Party candidate Park Kang-soo, who replaced the previous candidate at the last minute. Notably, both candidates hail from Gochang, Jeonbuk, making it an interesting contest between candidates from the same hometown.

In Geumcheon, four years ago, Oh Bong-soo, who ranked first in the Democratic Party primary, was replaced by Yoo Sung-hoon at the last minute. However, this time Oh Bong-soo has been confirmed as the People Power Party candidate, setting up a rematch against incumbent Yoo Sung-hoon, drawing attention to whether Oh can avenge his previous defeat.

In Gwanak, incumbent Park Jun-hee is seeking re-election. Although he is from the Democratic Party, in the last election he ran as a Bareunmirae Party candidate and secured second place by defeating the Liberty Korea Party candidate, showing strong potential for this election.

Notably, the Democratic Party's decision to nominate incumbent Park Jun-hee as a single candidate has caused backlash, with many supporters of preliminary candidate Heo Ki-hoe leaving the party, raising interest in how this will affect the election.

In the 2018 election, the Democratic Party swept 24 out of 25 Seoul district mayor positions, except Seocho-gu. This was shortly after the unprecedented historic event of the North Korea?United States summit between President Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un.

However, the June 1 local election is the first local election held after a regime change in five years, and with People Power Party candidate Yoon Seok-youl winning in 14 Seoul autonomous districts in the March 9 presidential election, there is keen interest in how the election results will turn out.